Effortful Control, Social Competence, and Adjustment Problems in Children at Risk for Psychopathology

Abstract

This study explored the factor structure and developmental trajectory of effortful control (EC), its relations with child adjustment, and the moderating role of age and gender in 75 4- to 6-year-old children at risk for psychopathology. Confirmatory factor analyses revealed two subcomponents of effortful control: Suppress/Initiate (the ability to inhibit a dominant response while initiating a new response) and Motor Control (inhibiting fine and gross motor activity). EC performance improved with age, and both subcomponents were associated with greater social competence at all ages. Associations with internalizing problems were moderated by child age such that greater EC was linked to fewer problems at age 4 but did not relate to problems at ages 5 or 6.

Notes

Note: Individual EC task scores are raw scores, whereas EC scaled scores (Suppress/ Initiate and Motor Control) are based on scaled EC task scores (rescaled 0–100). Intervention group, gender, race/ethnicity, and IQ differences on study variables were examined using GEE analyses, and no group differences were found on the study variables across three time points.

^a n = 38.

^b n = 55.

^c n = 37.

^d This score can be negative because it reflects difference scores.

Note: The analyses were based on a total sample size of 75 (sample use for CFA analyses, with approximately equal sample number from each age group).

∗p < .05. ∗∗p < .01.∗∗∗p < .001.

Note: Age is actual age (in years) at the time of assessment and is centered at age 4. Results from four generalized estimating equation analyses are presented here. All analyses controlled for intervention status. In the moderation models, after adjusting for intervention status, child gender and IQ were associated neither with baseline EC (suppress/initiate and motor control) nor with change in EC over time. Thus, results for moderation models are not presented. CI = confidence interval.

^a Age 4 = 0.

Note: Analyses were conducted separately for each EC subcomponent and child adjustment measure. For analyses of main effects, EC Suppress (sup) and Motor (mot) Control were centered at the grand mean. For analyses of moderation effects, the age variable was centered at age 4; gender was effect coded (female = − 1, male = 1). Twelve separate generalized estimating equation models are shown in this table, six for tests of main effects and six for tests of moderation. Each model controls for intervention status (effect coded as − 1 and 1). The six main effect models also controls for age (centered at the grand mean).

Estimates (B, standard error of B, and p) and 95% confidence limits of the EC fixed effect are shown in this table. These analyses, conducted with Child Behavior Checklist T scores, were similar to those conducted with Child Behavior Checklist raw scores. We also tested for quadratic relations between EC and problem behaviors, and we did not find support that high or low EC was associated with more problems behaviors.

^a Age 4 = 0.